From Captain to Changemaker: Sana Mahmud's Journey in Football for Good

In a world where football was considered off-limits for girls, Sana’s journey began on the school playgrounds of Pakistan. From an early age, she found herself drawn to the game, captivated by its power to connect, energize, and inspire. Her path took a bold step forward when she joined Young Rising Stars FC, one of Pakistan’s pioneering women’s football clubs. Through this experience, Sana's passion for football deepened, and her vision expanded as she saw firsthand how the sport could uplift girls like herself. A few years later, she was selected for an exchange program to the United States—a trip that would forever change her. There, she witnessed football in a new light: not just as a game, but as a tool for community building and social change.

Now, as a leading voice in the sport-for-good sector, Sana dedicates herself to programs that empower young girls in Pakistan and beyond, creating pathways for them in a game that once felt out of reach. She joins Bonito to recount her remarkable journey from national team player to global advocate, shedding light on the power of football to inspire transformation and to open doors where they were once firmly shut.

*note: This interview was conducted while Sana was still at Right to Play- she has recently joined the wonderful organization Free to Run as their Global Programs Manager

Bonito: Welcome Sana, we are so excited to speak with you on our platform!

Sana: likewise, great to be here with Bonito- what a great platform you are creating.

Bonito: Tell us about how your passion for football began and how you were captivated to explore the ways the game could bring about positive changes for society?

Sana: I think I was always a ‘sporty’ person, and my parents encouraged outdoor activity. Interestingly I also went to a school that at the time was among a handful of schools that promoted sports in Pakistan. We had annual sports days and football was also one of the games we played at school. As I grew older, I had the chance to tryout for a football club (The Young Rising Stars FC)…one of the pioneer women’s football clubs in the country. We were supported by the U.S Embassy in Islamabad, as part of an initiative to support grass roots women’s football. After we won our first ever championship in 2008, we were invited to participate in an exchange program to the United States (in 2009).  I learnt a lot on that trip; I saw football at every level (toddlers/pre-schoolers, high school, college and professional level football). On our last day, we attended a camp for autistic children where football was being used as a tool to engage the children. It was the first time I saw football being played without the concept of competition but rather just as a platform to expend the energy of the kids who were on a spectrum of learning. When I returned to Pakistan, I decided I wanted to explore this aspect of sport and started researching online and eventually ended up writing my thesis on the ‘Impact of sport on the self-esteem of Pakistani sports women”. And that is the beginning of my sport-for-development journey.

Bonito: It sounds like that was an eye opening and life changing experience to travel on that exchange. Why do you think football as a sport evokes such powerful sentiments with such a broad range of people all over the world?

Sana: I think because football is accessible. You don’t need a whole lot of equipment to play- just a ball… and in many communities, I have seen children be very creative about making a ball even if they don’t have one. And you get by using a mostly flat surface of any kind (I mean a ground is ideal, but people play on cemented surfaces, grass, turf, or even uneven spaces, as long as their ball is rolling). You can vary the number of players, and most likely if you are at the park, most people will get a chance to play. I think it is the inclusive and accessible nature of the sport that resonates with so many people…..and it’s just a lot of fun!

Bonito: Tell us about some of the football based projects you undertook in Pakistan and how has the game evolved over the last 15 years or so for young girls and women?

Sana: With Right To Play, we initiated a girl-focused football-for-development program in Lyari, in the city of Karachi. Lyari is known to be a hub for football in Pakistan, despite it being a low and middle income community, with limited resources and facilities, people struggling with poverty, drugs and crime, it thrives with the energy of its people. 

With the support of our corporate partner- Standard Chartered Bank, Right To Play engaged adolescent girls in modified football activities suitable for people of varying abilities, that teach life and leadership skills. The program called “Goal” aims at teaching both technical football skills and life skills (such as communication, teamwork, conflict resolution etc.). It is coupled with a girls’ specific curriculum (developed by Standard Chartered and their partners Women Win Foundation), which focuses on topics of rights, body-image, gender based violence, health/nutrition and financial literacy – all key aspects of building greater agency and empowering women.

Since I started playing the game has evolved immensely in Pakistan. We went from having to convince school leadership (in a private school where i studied), about the importance of girls playing, and still having to go behind their back to participate in event to the same schools now sponsoring sport uniforms/playing kits for their girls’ teams and many even offering sport scholarships.

However, the situation is still very different in the public schools that serve the majority of the Pakistani population- we have to do a lot of work, a lot of sensitization, a lot of community mobilization, just negotiating with parents and teachers to help them understand the value of sport programming. They are still in the mindset of “sport and play are a waste of time”.

Bonito: You just finished a long stint as the Global Partnerships responsible at Right to Play-Where do you see the football/sport for social good field heading in the next years? Which thematic areas will be most important to deal with and what are the big challenges awaiting sport for good practitioners?

Sana: Well, at Right To Play, we started as a sport-based organization and expanded over the years to incorporate all forms of play. The focus on football specifically is shifting, as we are aiming at play-based education (i.e. improving literacy and numeracy through play). However, football remains an important part of the Pakistan program as the football-focused girls’ empowerment programs have proven to have immense impact.

The covid pandemic, for the first time, gave me a reality check on how the sport for social good field could be impacted. Luckily we were able to modify programs and survive that phase. But reflecting on that experience, I think it is important for us to anticipate similar challenges in the future and be ready with mitigation strategies.

As for themes, I think climate change is a universal concern and that needs to be the focus of upcoming sport-for-development programs, as we can create behavior change and positive practices through sport, positively impacting the overall environment at local level.

Safeguarding will and always be a concern in any programs working with children. I definitely think we have a lot of work to do in safe sport and with building more robust policies and practices in the sport-for-development realm.

As for challenges; one thing already quite common and I have seen it happen, are youth centered sport programs claiming a greater good, but actually are not so intentional and structured in their work. We need to be able to differentiate between getting a bunch of kids together to play a game/match, versus enrollment in a regular sport-for-development program designed with meaningful outcomes. One-off events for optics have sometimes been used to pass off as S4D programs creating change, which we need to be more careful of.

Lastly, MEL (Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning) has always been and is still a tricky space. How are we gauging the impact of these programs…..short-term studies may not bring the most authentic results….long term studies are more likely to really help identify the deep impact of participation in S4D programs.

Bonito: Can you tell us about a moment in your football (or sport) for social good journey that touched your heart profoundly?

Sana: Oh there are so many-but I think one of the incidents I will share is Right To Play’s work in a slum area in the outskirts of the capital city of Islamabad. The makeshift schools by a private charity have informal infrastructure, children sit on the floor on mats and study, and have just a barren space outside the walls of their school to play. That space is public and often taken over by boys and men in the neighborhood, and/or by random motorcyclists to pass through as a short cut, or by loiterers who especially stop to stare as girls play. So once when conducting a focus group discussion with girls in that school, I was told that even though RTP’s program ended in the school, the girls were still eager to play and did not feel comfortable with all the challenges in the outdoor space they had. One of the girls would make her own efforts to collect girls, and try playing football within the confines of their school walls, but they were just demotivated due to the lack of space. Right To Play then built a temporary wall around the ground… and since that day the situation has changed completely. On my next visit to the school, one of the boys came over and jokingly said to me “the girls have taken over the ground, we don’t get a chance to play”... and that is definitely a positive step in equaling the playing field. I am very proud of those girls for taking space and continuing to follow their love for the game.

Bonito: That is so awesome- those girls literally broke down metaphoric barriers by building a physical one!

Sana: I know right!

Bonito: There are so many wonderful people working at Right to Play- many who go unnoticed in the global sport for good sector- Is there a specific colleague (or now former colleague) who you have collaborated with who maybe doesn’t always get the spotlight that you would like to shine today and why?

Sana: There are so many colleagues doing great things, and I have respect for most of them who truly do care about the people and communities Right To Play works with. But the reason I choose to admire one of my colleagues is because of his own personal journey. The Country Director of Right To Play in Pakistan- Ali Khayam. One might assume he gets his fair share of appreciation being in that leadership position, but I think it is the exact opposite. People take his success for granted, whereas I find his journey very inspiring. He started with Right To Play over 12 years ago or so, right when the organization was starting programs in Pakistan… and he was a communications intern or assistant I believe. He took public transport at odd hours, to travel inter-city when we had no organizational cars or even set SOPs, to manage such things. He worked to build relationships with local and national media, who would cover RTP’s work, as it was too new and people didn't understand what we were doing. He went from writing impact stories about our programs, and organizing media events, to writing proposals to get new funding, and setting up new projects, eventually becoming a project manager - then a Program Manager- then Head of Office and- then Country Director. When he became Head of Office, we were shrinking as a country program- our government restrictions for INGOs became even stricter and amidst the downsizing of our staff, and regulations, we also were hit with the covid pandemic. It felt like the end of our journey at Right To Play, and I was personally so insecure about my own and my colleagues’ jobs, as well as the future of S4D programs (due to all the social distancing etc.). But we pulled through under his leadership. I remember him motivating us to be creative, fight for our space, and modify our work to continue providing benefit to the children….and we found a way. He let us take risks, and innovate, and supported our decisions to do more work, sometimes even out of our traditional scope.

We modified programs and aggressively fundraised and today Pakistan is among the country offices with the largest portfolio. Our team is thriving and we didn’t have to reduce a single staff member during covid. We have only expanded since then, and our programs have diversified bringing new partners on board….and the best part is we have expanded to new geographies in Pakistan, bringing the benefit of sport and play programs to more children. He was in  a recent op-ed by the leading national newspaper.

Bonito: Sounds like a real leader!

Bonito: A documentary film has recently been made about the Pakistan Women's National Team which you contributed to. Can you tell us a bit about the film and also what does it make you feel about your own competitive stint in Pakastani Football as a trailblazer for the young girls today?

Sana:Yes-I am so excited that the documentary premiered in Pakistan on Women’s Day (2024), and will soon be launched worldwide (it is called Her Right to Play). I was approached by the Director to help connect them to the right people in the game, and as someone who cares about promoting football, I immediately agreed. The film focuses on the current Pakistan National Women’s football team and their first ever participation in the AFC Olympic qualifiers (which they played last year in Tajikistan). It was a historic achievement for Pakistan, and the documentary sheds light on the experiences of being a female athlete in the country, by focusing on a few key players (Here is a link of Pakistan’s win: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vPHWiFu_dlQ).

During the shooting, I got to meet the girls from the current team- we have a few expats on the team now (Pakistanis with dual nationality living abroad). They raise the standard of the game, and add value to the team definitely. Only two of my previous teammates are still on the team, and I felt so proud to watch them. They told me how things have drastically improved (in the compensation they receive, the facilities they are provided and the quality of training and frequency of competitions). It made me happy to know we are moving forward, because the 8-year ban of the Pakistan Football Federation by FIFA really regressed the sport tenfold!

The current Captain- Maria Jamila Khan (a Pakistani American), thanked me numerous times to acknowledge and appreciate our trailblazing efforts, and I felt proud to have played that role….a LOT has changed since the first Pakistani Women’s Football team went to play abroad in 2010 but we still have a long way to go. I feel good that we were able to change the landscape and open doors for more women to participate, as I have seen the momentum grow with my own eyes. Girls now have brown-skinned Pakistani role models in football, which I never had growing up! 

Bonito: The Women's game is growing so much around the world right now. What do you see as the biggest barriers to getting more girls involved in football and staying in football through their adolescence?

Sana: There are some similar barriers across the world for girls’ participation in sport in many parts of the world, but there are some that are more relevant to a conservative Muslim society, and also to a developing country like Pakistan. these include:

• Having myths/taboos around participation in sport: People often think rigorous physical exercise can negatively impact girls’ menstrual and reproductive health, and because of misinformation many are reluctant to allow their daughters to play.
• Traditional beauty standards: I observed this first hand growing up, AND in my work with Right To Play….girls are afraid to get tan skin (darker skin) playing outdoor sports in the sun. I was asked many times about how i maintained my complexion playing football, and that was a concern at a time by my own mother. She insisted I would not get marriage proposals if I got dark skin due to playing. Luckily, she outgrew that thinking very fast, after seeing how invested I was in the game.
• Attire: People are often worried about the kind of clothes girls will have to wear while playing sport which may not coincide with their cultural or religious beliefs. However, at RTP we try to encourage girls to wear what they feel comfortable in, and take necessary precautions to ensure girls can play in scarves, hijab etc.
• Impact on studies: often the concept is that those who could not do well enough in their academics, will go towards sports. This is the biggest misconception; sport requires you to have a very sharp mind. We are doing it wrong if we think athletes don’t need thinking abilities. Sport will only sharpen your mind, and help you do better at academics- allowing you that recharged mind and body, and discipline to manage school and sport life.
• Harassment and male dominance: The fact that sport has historically been and continues to be male dominated bars many girls from playing due to concerns around their safety. Cases of harassment/abuse/exploitation at the hands of male coaches/managers/administrative staff are all too common. We must bring more women in the game in leadership and managerial positions to create greater comfort for women’s participation.
• Safe spaces: When I moved to Canada, the first thing I noticed was the girls playing sport everywhere- girls in the playgrounds, in the sandboxes, girls biking on the roads, girls running, girls playing football in public grounds….and it makes your realize the stark contrast to a country like Pakistan… we hardly found safe spaces to play. We would have to really go above and beyond to find appropriate places, with boundary walls, or without loiterers who would stare at us, just to even enjoy a pick-up game.
• Financial incentive: Lastly, growing up in a developing country, the focus remains on activities and career pursuits that come with some financial incentive. The fact that women’s sports does not offer that, really hinders people from entering the sport. Even as a recreational activity, they would rather focus their time on something that will eventually be financially more lucrative for them. A poor nation is not thinking about its mental health, rather their survival, which only seems possible with money. Of course I don’t fully adhere to this, as I believe sport instills in us a sense of hope, a passion and energy to achieve goals, which can help build our character, and contributes to other aspects of our life.

Bonito: Finally, as you have worked in so many programs in different countries and different contexts, how important is finding the right football coaches when it comes to football for good programs?

Sana: Oh such a key aspect of the programs- the right coaches! They are the foundation of successful S4D programs. It is their attitude, their skill and their energy that will determine whether children return to these programs or call it quits, and even if children learn in the way that we envisioned. Just because you are a good football coach, does not mean you will be a good football-for-development coach. At RTP we have done a lot of work to train people with a specific sport background to understand the principles of sport-for-good….and at the same time, we have often engaged teachers/coaches from a non-sport background, who rather have a good understanding of working with children. Our purpose is to retain children long enough for them to derive the benefit from sport programs, and a good coach can help do that. We do not need a technical expert who will treat the children as if they are preparing for the World cup- the balance of technical and life skills is key, along with the most important element of creating joy and fun for children!

Bonito: Sana, this has been so much fun to catch up with you. Wishing you all the best at your new position at Free to Run- time for us to go and check out your movie!

Sana: Thanks so much Bonito for having me on and discussing such great topics.